300 days of beauty, day 36 [hidden luxury]

I still have one sick girl, going on two. Our kitchen counter looks like this:

We were cleaning and disinfecting this afternoon, and I was struck with a pang of...thankfulness. 

Why? 

I looked at my counter and I saw medicine and vitamin supplements that I can pick up in less than ten minutes...riding a bike no less. My kids get sick and a store with everything I need is only minutes away. A doctor is a call away or a ten minute drive.

I saw my electric kettle. Hot water--a luxury to so many in the world and I rarely, if ever have to give it a second thought. Hot water for tea, to mix with lemon and honey, for hot showers and baths and laundry. An aid for healing, relief and killing germs. Luxury.

My hope is not in my proximity to my local store, my hope is not in the medicines or the doctors. My hope is in the Lord. But I am thankful. We have what so many do not and it should not be taken lightly.

This is not a new thought for me, but it comes back around at times when the norm would be to not feel very blessed. And truly, I'm not saying that having sick kids is not big deal. I'm not saying that the right way to be is rosy and happy in spite of the circumstances. Believe me, I have dear friends walking through rugged trials. But even there, hope and blessing and thankfulness have been found.

Last summer, Belle had pneumonia. She was so very sick and we didn't know what was going on. A slightly frantic call to my doctor was answered by his medical assistant saying, "You need to take her to the ER and you need to take her now." 

The hospital is less than 10 minutes away and the drive seemed to take forever. Within minutes, I was carrying my sweet, snuggly, and super-sick daughter through the hospital doors. Within half an hour, she had an IV and they were doing tests. Within an hour an X-ray was ordered, the pneumonia was found and antibiotics were started and prescribed. Once I felt some relief from my anxiety, I remember thinking that this was all going to be very expensive. I also remember feeling grateful at the mere fact that all of this treatment was available. In her check-ups during the following weeks, her doctor mentioned that it wasn't so long ago that pneumonia was a death sentence for children. Scary, but true. It was still scary, but again, I'm thankful.

My sweet girl sleeps on her "sick bed" in the living room as I type. She'll take a warm bath later, take more medicine and drink another "vitamin drink." We may get sleep tonight. No matter, I'll take it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. As a side note for Belle's bout with Pneumonia: While I drove to the hospital I prayed for her and for the nurses and doctors who would treat her. A guy in our church is an ER nurse and although their family had been traveling for his work, I had heard they were back in town. I remembered another family who had taken their child to the ER and how blessed they were when Tim walked into their room. I don't know why this passed through my head, but as soon as they took us to an exam room, Tim walked in the door.

Sometimes it's just the little things that let you know that God sees you. He is moving, active, and cares about what is going on. He cared enough to know how much a friendly face meant to me. He was detailed enough to put Tim on the schedule and for Tim to be free and assigned to our case. He heard my unconsciously uttered prayer.

300 days of beauty, day 35 [snuggles]

I love this girl. SO. MUCH. She is happy, vibrant, energetic, joyful, curious, and incorrigible. She went from having a cough, to completely tanking. She said no to chicken, broccoli, and a bubble bath (three favorites!) and asked to go to bed with tears streaming down her face.

My husband snapped the pic--worth capturing.

We put on her pajamas and I asked if she'd like to cuddle for a few minutes. She told me she didn't want to get her germs all over my bed. I suggested the couch and she said she'd like that. Her daddy brought her a "vitamin drink" and we had a brand new Frozen themed Kleenex box just for her. (Usually she steals the toilet paper roll from the bathroom to use as Kleenex, so this is a bit preemptive....)

Belle is the best snuggler of all of the kids. If she wakes up first in the morning, she will crawl in our bed and rest between us. I have many memories of seeing her bright-eyed and bushy-tailed chocolate brown eyes inches away from my face saying "Can I snuggle with you?"

Yes. Every time. Yes.

We snuggled and she fell asleep almost immediately. How many more times will I hold one of my snuggling sick kids in my arms? Moments to cherish. Devastatingly beautiful moments.

Belle stirred awake and said, "Maybe it's time for me to go to bed now." Her daddy carried her to her room and tucked her in. I heard, "I love you too, mommy" as I closed the door.

My house is a mess, the kitchen stacked with dinner's dishes, projects and to-do lists abound, my daughter is sick, schedules will be rearranged, the day went just okay, but I feel happy. Not perfect or together, but happy. 

Snuggles will do that.

300 days of beauty, day 34 [Barzi]

It's a happy birthday to our sweet, cuddly, stuffed-animal-esque fluff-muppet! We love our pup and she has been a happy encouragement and comfort to us over the last four years. 

We frequently call her "Barzilocks" because she searches for the most comfortable sleep spots in the house. She's always on the lookout for an upgrade. Last night she plopped down in D's room as he was getting ready for bed. She stealthily waited until D had fallen asleep, and then she jumped up to snuggle down for the night on his very soft and roomy queen-sized bed. She has done this several times and when D realizes she is there, he nudges her fluffy-opportunistic-self onto the floor. For her birthday present today, D let her keep sleeping through the night and into the morning.



[Barzi: short for Barzillai, a man who encouraged and refreshed King David in the desert when David was on the run. My husband loved Barzillai in the Bible and thought to give D that name (or as a middle name) when we were choosing names for our child-to-be. At this point, my husband was given pet-naming rights for our first dog. We shortened it to Barzi to make it more girly sounding, still praying that our dog would be a refreshment and encouragement to our family. She is. She's perfect for us.]

300 days of beauty, day 33 [15 years]

Fifteen years ago today, this guy asked me if I wanted to start dating. I said yes.

He stole my phone this morning and set several alarms.

Alarm #1: Jim Brickman's song Love of My Life and it went off repeatedly while I was trying to talk to my cousin on the phone. For my 26th birthday, my very talented husband learned this song on the piano and serenaded me as part of my birthday gift. Seems like a lifetime ago. He was in graduate school, we lived in married student housing and we had a six-month-old son. I remember the exact layout of the room, where I was standing, everything.

Alarm #2: In the Still of the Night by Boyz 2 Men. I was sitting in the very quiet waiting room at the orthodontist's office when it started to play and I was digging quickly to silence it.

The story: We traveled to Florida with two friends in 2005 [sans kids]. We went to Disney World et al and spent several days at Cocoa Beach near Cape Canaveral. Out of nowhere, the two husbands started serenading the two wives on the beach. They sang In the Still of the Night and had practiced and planned for some time. This kind of thing is not totally out of the ordinary for these two friends. Usually their performances would be more in the genre of the Muppet Theme Song. We were entertained, touched, and maybe a bit embarrassed...

After the alarms, he started blowing up my phone by sending Youtube music videos every half hour on the half hour for 15 hours. The kids were cracking up as the day went on. I was pretty much walking around the house with my phone blaring songs. It put smiles on their faces too.

We went to lunch at a new deli cafe--friendly staff, creative decor, but, we did wait for ONE HOUR for our sandwiches. I enjoyed mine and my french onion soup was quite tasty. My husband did not share the sentiment for his sandwich and actually had trouble swallowing it toward the end. He may be the least picky eater on the planet, so it was quite a statement. I was prepared to like this new cafe, but I'll not return. One hour for a sandwich...sorry.

We enjoyed our time chatting and laughing about life while marveling at the time it was taking to make a sandwich. We reminisced about other "food fails" like the Thai chicken wrap filled with pureed chicken more consistent in texture with cat food than chicken. Sometimes it's all about the food texture that is the deal breaker. Hence my husband's near inability to finish his meal.

Fifteen years. Wow. I remember the day we started dating so very clearly. The booth at Swenson's, the split pea soup, and mint chocolate shake (mine and his, not together). And I still have the print out of the first e-mail he sent me at my work the next day. He'll be embarrassed, but I have to include part of it. I carried it around in the pocket of my coat for months after we started dating and got engaged.

STEF!
Hey, wassup? I woke up, and had some stuff I wanted to get out, so I typed this up at home. I have to get used to some of this--you're my GIRLFRIEND. We're dating. Do you want to go out sometime? Do you want to go on a date? We're together. Yeah, you're my girlfriend.
AHHH!
Yeah, I've thought about this for a long time. But, I feel like I shouldn't even be writing out this stuff, cuz you might find out that I really like you, and that would be a bad thing. I like you a lot. You're pretty stinkin' awesome. No, really awesome. Really....

(etc. etc., ending with...)

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!

bubye,
sh~

The other night my husband and I were joking around and D had not gone to bed yet. I looked at D and said,

"Can you tell we like each other? Not just like each other, but we're friends. We like being together."

A shy smile from my eldest, "Yeah, I can."

300 days of beauty, day 32 [stacks]

Stacks. 

Stacks of papers make me quite unhappy [I generally try to ignore]. Stacks of dishes, same reaction. Stacks of dirty [and clean] laundry...daunting. All sorts of stacks are nothing more than "a black fly in [my] chardonnay."

[Yes, I did just do that. Now you too can have that song running through your head. Sorry not sorry.]

But I love stacks of books. Sometimes I stack books in my window sill so I can enjoy them each time I glance outside. Weird, maybe. But in my heart, God created a love for story so ardent, I can do nothing to stem the tide.

My current windowsill assortment:

100 books, the finale

D generally uses his picture ledges to display books. I love it. These are favorites and currently reading selections.

I challenged my 11-year-old to read 100 books this last summer. His deadline: September 21st. He did it! [I'm simply slow at marking his feat here on my blog.]

I'm very proud of him. At some points he was reading more than one book each day. And yes, he did leave his room. He was not a summer hermit.

His last book: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (a favorite too!)

Five Favorites:
The Sugarcreek Gang series by Paul Hutchens--all 36 books

Once Upon A Marigold by Jean Ferris 

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes

The Wingfeather Saga (4 books) by Andrew Peterson

 

300 days of beauty, day 31

I'm training for a half-marathon. I swore I'd never do one and I'm pretty sure I thought every friend who did was crazy, but here I am. Today was my first long run, 5 miles. I've done 5 miles two other times in my existence, so I was apprehensive.

My husband mapped out a 2.5 mile loop that I could lap. He tried to convince me that laps were bad, but I didn't listen. It was not fun to run by my car and know I had to do all of that over again. So, no more lap loops!

It was windy, icy and muddy in spots, but I made it. I'm hobbled now, but it felt very good.

The loop takes a wide birth around a community lake. After finishing my five miles, I walked up the embankment to this view. 

Beautiful. Serene. Peaceful.

I did some stretching until I couldn't take the wind anymore and sauntered back to my car. 

Running is such a mental game. I can feel elated, angry, discouraged, and sick in the course of each mile. I question whether or not I can do this. I talk in my head. I pray. I pound out lyrics...word by word, note by note, each helping my stride stay constant, to not give up.

Each year I go after something that I just didn't think I could do. Those feats I had avoided because I assumed I would fail. This spring I'm tackling the half-marathon. And my afternoon run culminating with this iced-over-lake-scape became my first big notch toward my goal.

Ask me how excited I am when I can't walk tomorrow...

300 days of beauty, days 25-30 [basking]

This whole week we've been basking in Super Bowl glory. Glorious. It's only appropriate to allocate six days of my 300 for our basking euphoria. Our family trekked to the World Championship parade on Tuesday with one million others.

Amazing. 

For me, better than the Oscars, my red carpet spectator moment...or orange in this case.

I may have shed a few tears. Make fun if you will, but I just loved it.

Thunder! Belle was excited. I thought the phones in the picture were amusing.

Von, Peyton, Demarcus, the Lombardi Trophy...to name a few...

 

A little bit closer and you can see Kubiak, Mosely Manning and almost Elway...

Emmanuel and DT!

Talib...

McManus and Colquitt plus cute kids...

Number 77, Karl Mecklenburg, aka the White Rhino...throwback to the Broncos Defense in the 80's plus Terrell Davis. We love TD.

I don't know...

The State Capitol and the fringes of one million...

Did this guy get a ticket? I think the cops were so happy that they only had one incident in all of this, they might have just let it go...not sure though...

[I love football, but I've always wondered why it was called a "World" championship. It's like we try and pretend that soccer doesn't really matter...but I digress.]

300 days of beauty, day 24 [go broncos!]

Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee. Go Vols! Go Broncos!

I thought it was appropriate to post this lovely view of Neyland Stadium from Fort Dickerson. We love Peyton, we love the Broncos. I'm so nervous, but happy to watch my team!

300 days of beauty, day 23

"For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 

 Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be."

Psalm 139:13-16

 

This girl.

I look at her and marvel at God's sovereignty.

I smile at my girl, born in a land-locked, semi-tropical Central American village, who loves the snow with her whole heart.

I love that she would go barefoot every day if she could, she adores rice (which is the only food we could get her to eat when we brought her home), she dances with grace and innate talent, she devours audio books, and she could spend every day baking in the kitchen.

Back to the snow--I love watching her in snow. For me it represents a path and setting so different than what she seemed destined for at birth. Her life experience repertoire would most likely not have included snow. I realize this is one superficial fact, the truth is much more profound. 

I don't know why He chose her to be plucked out of her country of birth, but I know He did. Just as I know He chose our family for her and her for our family. 

I watch her play in the snow, icicles in her raven-black hair, crusty snow on her caramel-colored skin, and glittery snowflakes clinging to her eyelashes as she swipes droplets out of her gorgeous eyes, described aptly on her birth certificate as "coffee [cafe]". And her joy, so much joy. Beautiful.

I marvel and I'm so very thankful.

300 days of beauty, day 22

Snow day number two. Read. Paint. Shovel. Sled. Repeat. Plus a few hot cocoa fixes.

This painting sharply contrasts the scenery behind it...

We "celebrated" Groundhog Day and watched Punxutawney Phil make his prediction. 

[Spoiler alert: Early Spring!] 

We remain skeptical as we still have ice and snow from December that we can't get rid of. But in the spirit of learning, we watched the Wild Kratts episode on groundhogs, followed by Peep and his episode on the groundhog, plus painted spring pictures, and we constructed a super-cute craft D put together for his sisters (with measurements and everything!).

The kids were thrilled that their dad came home early to build a snow fort with them. We went sledding with friends until we couldn't feel our fingers, and Belle lost a tooth when her daddy threw her in a snow bank. She was very excited.

Also, the kids were able to serve neighbors by shoveling. D has struck up a very sweet friendship with our neighbor, Joe. It started with shoveling and has turned into so much more. Today, Joe asked D if he could come run errands with him. D returned beaming and so enjoyed his time with Joe. They went to the bank, stopped at Starbucks and Joe bought D a hot chocolate, picked up a prescription, and then some groceries. Joe even bought Dawson a very nice shovel so that he would have the proper equipment when he shovels the neighborhood.

Because we homeschool, D is always available and it has made a path for this relationship to blossom. This is not to say that serving neighbors is dependent upon homeschooling, not at all. For us, we happen to have quite a few retired and elderly neighbors and because we are home during the day, we have been able to build these relationships and serve them in the daytime hours. It's good for my kids and I believe a blessing for our neighbors also. We are so blessed to have the neighbors we do!

P.S. This morning as my husband was shoveling with our kids, using our sub-par shovels, he decided to pray for a shovel...for God to provide a new, high quality shovel to better serve the neighborhood. This may sound strange--we could go to the store to buy one. But for us, the shovels we had were functional. Encouraged in faith by reading God's Smuggler about Brother Andrew, my husband, in faith prayed for this simple and seemingly insignificant provision. When he arrived home, standing by our front door was a brand new shovel. He had no idea that D had spent the afternoon with Joe and none of us knew that Joe would buy a shovel for D. We knew nothing of his prayer either.

God is active. He cares about the little things. I needed this reminder so very much. And I pray this provision etched Truth onto the hearts of my kids too. 

300 days of beauty, day 21

Is there anything better than a snow day? Cancel everything, read books, bake, paint, drink hot cocoa, watch snowflakes fall and frolicking children build snow forts, and in the evening you're all ready for bed because you never changed from your pajamas. Bliss.